Anew
by cocobunni
Summary: A short continuation of the book. I suck at summaries, so please read :


**Umm...this is from an old English project I had, and we had quite a limit, so I wasn't able to make it as long and more detailed as I preferred (I still went over the limit, though :O) (^.^')...Anhow, I hope you like it. I appreciate reviews (*v*)!**

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The autumn leaves crunched crisply as Jonas walked contently through the woods. His wife was walking next to him, and her hand was in his. His wife's name was Alyce, and she was one of Rosemary's best friends when they were in the Community together. She too had escaped to Elsewhere at around Jonas's age. She twirled her red curls with her finger, then let it go gently and spoke.

"Jonas, do you suppose we should round up the children now?"

Jonas thought fondly about his three children, who were, at the moment, playing a game of hide-and-seek. There was Charlotte, who was 9 years old, Adyn, who was 7, and Lea, who was 4 and was going to have her birthday in half a month. Of course, there was also Gabe. Gabe was around his late teens and, although he was given to another parent for adoption by Jonas, he was best friends with the children, and even their older-brother-like figure.

"Hmm…not now. I think it's a great time to take advantage of this opportunity and go walking in this great weather."Alyce giggled, and Jonas smiled as he remembered his times at the Community and how _wonderful_ it was where he was now, in Elsewhere. There was color, seasons, real, true, feelings, and best of all, people could make their very own choices. Jonas's thoughts were interrupted by Alyce, waving her hand in front of his face.

"Jonas? Jonas?" Jonas shook his head as he snapped himself out of it. "Yeah?" Alyce put her hand down and smiled. "Oh, just wondering if you were still on this planet. You were just staring into space like that! What were you thinking about?" Jonas breathed in, then let out a huge sigh. "Uhhh...you know…just about the Community…all that stuff…" Alyce's smile started to fade slowly, as she started to think deeply about it too. "Right." She said shortly after plainly. Jonas assumed that she disliked him bringing up the subject and quickly apologized. "…Sorry for bringing that up…I know you don't like remembering about Rosemary and all…" Alyce gave a forgiving smile. "Oh no, it's perfectly fine." She paused. "Actually I think it's great that there ever really _was_ a Community like ours." Jonas raised his eyebrows. "R-really?" He stammered. How was it possible that the Community was a _good_ thing? Alyce pursed her lips. "I think it's a truly good thing that there ever was a Community like ours…because…without it, we would never have been able to appreciate Elsewhere as fully as we do now." Jonas's eyes brightened as he nodded in agreement.

"I think I understand! If we never lived in the Community, we would have just taken Elsewhere so lightly. I mean, we'd look up at the sky and not really care that its blue or not…or the prettiness of the sunset…or the flowers…and we would complain about the weather all the time, wishing it was cold when it's hot…or hot when it's cold, now wouldn't we?

Alyce opened her mouth to say something in agreement, but she was interrupted by the children, followed by Gabe, running towards them. "Mom! Dad!" Adyn yelled. They all stopped in their tracks. "We…" Charlotte started, but then started to try and catch her breath. "We found something that we want to show you! Come on!" Lea grabbed her mother's hand, and then they all started the short run, the children in the lead, and Gabe in the back, panting.

Suddenly, they came to an abrupt halt. Jonas recognized the place instantly. They were at the river that divided the Community from the outside world. Jonas could see nothing across it though; there were only grey-colored ruins of a place that once was. Jonas and Alyce looked at each other, not knowing what had really happened to the Community. Then, their eyes averted to a sign

**Under Improvement. Changing to a new, better way of life.**

Jonas, Alyce, and Gabe grinned. "What is it, Dad?" Charlotte asked. Jonas gave a content sigh, and pat her on the head. "Ok, let me tell you all a story."


End file.
